Addressing Monday’s daily press conference about Macau’s novel coronavirus (COVID-19) situation, Alvis Lo Iek Long, a clinical director of the public Conde de S. Januário Hospital Centre, said that the COVID-19 pandemic will surely not be over in the near future, adding that the epidemic across the world will only come to an end after a specific medicine to treat the disease or a COVID-19 vaccine has been successfully developed.
“For the time being it is still difficult to precisely predict when the epidemic [in Macau] will be over as the epidemic in various places in the world is constantly escalating,” Lo said.
“The epidemic will possibly even get more serious if the novel coronavirus mutates to become more transmissible, while it may subside and eventually disappear if the virus mutates to become less transmissible,” Lo said, adding that the epidemic, which is easing, will possibly become serious again if people let their guard down.
Macau has so far confirmed 45 COVID-19 cases. Macau’s 10 “first wave” patients – comprising seven tourists from Wuhan and three locals – have been discharged, while three of the 35 patients in the “second wave” – which began on March 15 – were discharged on Easter Sunday. All the 35 cases in the current “second wave” have been classified as imported, most of them local students returning from overseas. The 45th case was confirmed last Wednesday, meaning that the city has not confirmed a new COVID-19 case for five consecutive days in the “second wave”.
Macau’s “first wave” of the COVID-19 infection lasted from January 22 to February 4.
(The Macau Post Daily/Macau News)
